paper airplanes • open

[Mallowpaw]

mallowpaw yawned, salmon tongue curling inward and eyes scrunching closed. the alabaster feline stretched out his front legs then his back, storm-grey eyes flitting about the apprentices littered around the den. mallow shifted around in his nest, shaking out messy fur and licking it down. mornings were often spent on grooming for the young cat, the sheer thickness of it requiring a lot of time and effort to groom. it was annoying.

pawsteps echoed in the cavern, and he lifted his gaze to the source. he saw the vague shape of another cat come in, and mallowpaw averted his stare. he knew it wasn't beetlepaw—he'd know his sister's presence anywhere—so he wasn't quite sure if he wanted to engage in conversation.

[Deleted]

Cinnamonpaw trotted into the den with icy flakes dusting his pelt and immediately let out a huge yawn. It was morning, yeah, but he hadn't slept at all during the previous night. Not that it mattered much. The ginger-and-white tom's mentor, Vinewhip, was still missing and he hadn't gotten any training done yet.

As much as Cinnamon was disheartened by the idea of falling behind his denmates, he didn't want to bother Robinstar or Sunfish by asking for a new mentor. So this was his life for now. With nothing to do, the youngster cast his gaze around, searching for someone to talk to. Maybe conversation would help keep him awake.

"Hi!" he chirped towards someone who looked to be his own age. He sidled over and tilted his head curiously at Mallow. "I'm Cinnamonpaw, what's your name?"

[Mallowpaw]

mallowpaw swiped a paw against his ear, eyes half-closed with the effects of sleep still heavy on him. in his mind, he was choosing between giving up his task of grooming and getting up and instead go back to sleep for for a while longer. he cracked one pale eye open to gaze down at himself then his nest. no, it'll just be harder for me to get up a second time.

"hi!" the voice sounded rather high and thin, probably a younger apprentice, but it was unmistakably male. mallowpaw tensed up and his eyes snapped open. cinnamonpaw. the other approached him and looked friendly enough, yet mallowpaw could never quite bring himself to ever fully relax around cats of his own gender. he brusquely nodded his head, posture rigid and fur slightly more fluffed for a more intimidating appearance. "i'm mallowpaw," he responded.

[Deleted]

(wow I am so sorry about my lack of activity)


"Huh? Mallow? That's a nice name, I like it," purred the bobtailed tom. He was perpetually fascinated by all the names of cats, but especially ones that sounded nice to his ears. It would probably seem weird to most. Then again, Cinnamonpaw liked to think of himself as friendly, and it was always good to pay attention to names so he could remember them later.

This train of thought was interrupted, however, once he noticed how Mallowpaw looked tense and stiff. "Oh - I'm not bothering you am I?" Cinnamon asked with an apology already in the back of his throat and a hint of disappointment in the way his whiskers drooped. Maybe that wasn't the case; maybe the other apprentice was irritated by something else. He could certainly hope.

"Um, I'll go if you don't want to talk…"

[Mallowpaw]

Mallowpaw blinked, surprised at how affable Cinnamonpaw was. The white tom had a bad habit of making snap judgements about other males; influenced by the warnings his father constantly made, especially when it came to protecting his sister from them.. well, Mallowpaw didn't think very highly of cats his own gender. Cinnamonpaw's friendly approach had Mallowpaw reeling, to say the least.

He didn't say anything about Cinnamonpaw's compliment, struck silent still. His blue eyes scrutinized the apprentice, and he wondered if he was truly like this or if it was a facade. "Oh - I'm not bothering you, am I?" Mallowpaw, out of pure reflex, would have snapped out an affirmation right then if it weren't for Beetlepaw's voice in his head telling him to give this one a chance. Pursing his lips, Mallowpaw shook his head and forced himself to relax. "No," he mewed, "Not used to.. talking very much." Ah, Beetlepaw had always been the better conversationalist.